School of Earth & Sustainability

Email:
SES.Admin​@nau.edu
Call:
928-523-9333

More Study Abroad programs

For a full range of NAU international and exchange opportunities, visit the study abroad website.

International opportunities

NAU students in the School of Earth & Sustainability have a wide range of opportunities to gain a global perspective. You can study in another country for a semester or participate in the five-year Interdisciplinary Global Programs, which combines your GLG, ENV, or ESS degree with a degree in language or culture and includes one year spent learning abroad.

Interdisciplinary Global Programs (IGP) Accordion Open

This interdisciplinary five-year program provides students a way to get a degree in a science (e.g. Geology, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Sustainability) and a language (Spanish, French, German) or culture (Comparative Cultural Studies, with an emphasis on Japan and China).

  • Study the language of your intended country every semester to prepare for a fourth year abroad
  • Take courses in science, culture, and language in your new language abroad and complete a semester-long internship
  • In the fifth year, consolidate your learning and graduate with two degrees and an ability to work cross-culturally

Information and applications

Meet IGP students and alumni from the School of Earth & Sustainability:

Genevieve Conley
NAU degrees: BS Environmental & Sustainability Studies, BA Spanish

NAU honors: President’s Prize, CEFNS Outstanding Senior, Gold Axe Award.

Destination abroad: Tucumán and Bariloche, Argentina

My experience in Argentina really challenged and changed me for the better. Not only did I fall in love with the food and music, but the friends I made will stay with me for the rest of my life. The year I spent abroad made me a more resilient person, changed how I interact with others, and helped solidify my career aspirations. This was an unforgettable adventure and I would do it again in a heartbeat. 

Mia Piqué
NAU degrees: BS Geology, BA Spanish

NAU honors: President’s Prize, Gold Axe Award.

Destination abroad: Tucumán, Argentina, and Quito, Ecuador

My year abroad transcended far beyond the traditional sense of an academic experience, with studying abroad in Tucumán, Argentina and then interning in Quito, Ecuador. Every person I met has taught me a new world view and because of them, I am a wiser world citizen and a more confident me. It is true what people say, the places you see are amazing, but it is the people that you meet that make the true difference. From living in The Andes, backpacking Patagonia for a couple of weeks, boating to Uruguay, standing on the Equator, studying an active volcano in the Amazon jungle and hiking it, seeing rainbow mountains, Machu Picchu, and even crossing into Brasil through bus on a whim… I would have never imagined all that I have learned through these crazy adventures, but more importantly through the people I have met. I have learned how to make mistakes successfully. I have learned how to be more brave in asking questions when I have no idea what is going on, yet I have become confident in trying my best to figure challenges out first. I would say I have become a more confident, wiser, and more-willing-to-mess-up-in-order-to-learn-scientist.  My gratitude could never truly be expressed by words.

Tamika Wright
NAU degrees: BS Environmental & Sustainability Studies, emphasis in Global Sustainability, BA Modern Languages, French IGP Emphasis

Destination abroad: Université de Bordeaux, France

Research topic: Pollen representation of the main vegetation communities in South Korea based on different modern surface samples

Post-graduation goal: MS Botany, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa

Living in a country with entirely different customs and bureaucracy was tough, but it made me a more flexible and resilient person. I wouldn’t change a thing.

Bradlee Cotton
NAU degrees: BS Environmental Sciences, emphasis in Applied Geology; BA Spanish, IGP emphasis

Destination abroad: National University of Tucumán, Argentina

Research topic: Gravitational and alluvial processes in Quebrada de Humahuaca, Argentina

Now: MS student in Geology and Water Resources, University of Wyoming

My experience in Argentina will help me in graduate school and push me forward into whatever I do professionally.  It was a hard year, but it was absolutely the best year of my life.

Ray Eckland
NAU degrees: BS Geology; BA Modern Languages, French IGP Emphasis

Destination abroad: University of Bordeaux, France

Research topic: Geologic mapping with the French Geological Survey (BRGM)

Adapting to a foreign style of learning has rounded out my ability to acquire and think about information. I took a field methods course during my second semester that involved a 7-day geologic mapping trip in the Alps and was a highlight of my academic experience…Aside from my academic and professional experiences, I made lifelong friendships through weekend skiing and rock climbing trips to the Pyrenees, Spain and southeast France. In all, studying abroad was probably the best decision I have made in my education.

SES Courses Abroad Accordion Closed

Hydrogeology and Water Systems Engineering of Karst Aquifers in Bosnia, Croatia, and Montenegro

Nearly 25% of the Earth’s surface consists of rocks that are susceptible to dissolving to create sinkholes and other erosional features – called karst. Visit and learn about Serbia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Croatia where science and engineering of karst was developed.

  • Unique opportunity for NAU students to learn from world experts about how Serbians have learned to live and work in karst for centuries.
  • Earn NAU credits in a summer course for international students (jointly sponsored by UNESCO).

Information and applications

School of Earth & Sustainability
Location
Room A108 Building 11
Ashurst
624 S Knoles Dr
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
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